This past week was our first chance to work with both of our kindergarten classes on activities that were specific for their ability levels. At the start of the term myself and fellow teacher candidates decided to place students in groups where they personally fit best to be challenged just enough and be individually successful. For this week, I have been working with the students of the lower ability group. I have previously worked with some of these students through the number sense portion of Dr. Egan’s class, Education 364 math methods. The majority of these students are just starting to grasp some of the basic concepts of numbers.
During this past week I worked with the students from both classes to help identify a quantity up to ten and write the corresponding numbers. This activity allowed me to see that within the lower level group of students that I am currently working with there is a wide range of ability and understanding. There were a few students who flew through the activity and then would assist other struggling students complete their sheet. The next activity took their understanding of relating a number to a quantity to the next level. Students were given and wheel divided into sections containing different quantities of stickers, and ask to attach the clothespin that had the numeral of that quantity on the wheel. Both of these activities reinforced the varying abilities that are in these groups for both classes. Within these activities I was able to see that this group of students need to have something physical to count. Many students were double counting in both activities due to the lack of mobility in the manipulatives.
From the past few weeks, I have noticed that there are a few students, one from each class, that may benefit from getting more one-on-one attention that is specific to their needs and abilities. I am excited to see what these students are able to accomplish between now and the end of the year:)